Eurasian Secret Services Daily Review

09.09.2007
Eurasian Secret Services Daily Review
AIA
REVIEW TOPICS:
Russian espionage in UK at Cold War level, Moscow does not comment
Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Director speaks out to Moscow newspaper
Lawyers of FSB Lieutenant-Colonel complained about groundlessness of his criminal case
High-ranking replacements to take place in security forces of Russia’s Dagestan
Extremist grouping’s female wing leader was second militant killed by FSB in Karachayevo-Cherkessia
Ukraine’s SBU reveals lack of information concerning acts of terrorism in Ministry of Transport
Yushchenko congratulated employees of military intelligence of Ukraine
Ukrainian military intelligence celebrates its 15 year anniversary
Amount of damage to security of Kyrgyzstan being established in current espionage case
Opening of the files ruined Bulgarian secret intelligence: candidate for mayor

Russian espionage in UK at Cold War level, Moscow does not comment
Unnamed British government sources say Russian espionage in Britain has reached Cold War levels.
The Daily Telegraph writes that about half the 62 diplomatic staff members at the Russian embassy in London are actually involved in spying, including military and commercial intelligence and monitoring dissidents.
According to the paper, their tasks range from seeking military and commercial secrets to monitoring Russian dissidents based in London, most notably Boris Berezovsky, the billionaire and outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin. Overseas spying by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has probably been accorded a higher priority in recent months, The Daily Telegraph marks. It adds that after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, overseas espionage was reduced temporarily simply because Russia, then in the grips of an economic crisis, could not afford the cost. But sources said they soon returned to their previous levels; the Russian espionage operation in Britain probably returned to Cold War levels a decade or more ago, the paper notes. The British newspaper quoted Mark Pritchard, the Conservative Member of Parliament, who chairs the cross-party parliamentary group on Russia, as saying that the high number of spies as diplomats “beggs the question of whether the Russians are more interested in diplomacy or in spying on Britain for political and military secrets”.
Russian Foreign Intelligence Service does not comment articles of the British press, head of the agency’s Press bureau, Sergei Ivanov, told the Moscow-based news agency RIA Novosti.


Sergei Lebedev


Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Director speaks out to Moscow newspaper
Director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) General Sergei Lebedev said in his interview to the weekly Moskovskiye novosti that elements of the "Cold War " had began to revive in activity of some foreign secret services which organized "coloured" revolutions. He marked that „today Russia became an object of steadfast interest of experts of the certain profile”.
At the same time Lebedev acknowledges that there is a system of interaction between the Russian intelligence and intelligence services of the NATO countries and other western countries. Already for a long time there is an understanding in the international community, including the secret services, of necessity of association of efforts for counteraction to terrorism, the SVR Director marks.
By virtue of the specificics – the SVR has been conducting counteraction to distribution of weapons of mass destruction, organized crime, drug trafficking and to other transnational threats to security and stability in the world on bilateral basis, Lebedev underlines. However in some cases, especially when it is a question of international terrorist groupings, the circle of the partners uniting efforts in struggle against the general harm, can be also wider, the SVR chief notes. „Principles of cooperation have universal character and have been exercised in practice. We have been applying them in interaction with special services of the NATO countries and with partners from the Asian, African and Latin American states”.
Lebedev says relations between the SVR of Russia and their colleagues from the CIS countries have closer character and are under construction on the basis of multilateral and bilateral agreements. „They provide versatile cooperation of security services and intelligence agencies, information exchange on a wide range of issues representing mutual interest. Specific tasks of mutual cooperation have been solved on evereyday basis.” Lebedev names regular meetings of heads of intelligence services of the CIS countries a good tradition.
According to Lebedev, the statements which have appeared recently in the West about radical activity of the Russian intelligence are mismatching the reality. He claims that in comparison with the times of the two main world block opposition, the Russian intelligence has reduced its presence abroad, has essentially reconstructed the activity, reconsidered and narrowed its priorities and refused from globalism.
„The western intelligence agencies have been operating not less, and sometimes even more vigorously (I even would tell, more aggressive), than the SVR.” Lebedev says „Frequent statements about activization of the SVR operations is consequence of political conjuncture, dictated by aspiration of counterintelligence to justify necessity of their existence, expansion of personnel to achieve increase in financing, etc.”
Moskovskiye novosti also writes about Lebedev’s biography. Director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service has passed all steps of career in the intelligence, from an operative up to the head of Service. He was born on April 9, 1948 in the city of Dzhizak (Uzbek SSR), the same place where in 1965 he graduated from the school with a gold medal. His father, Nikolai Ivanovich, comes from Siberia, has served in Soviet troops in the WWII participting in fighting from Volga up to Austria, then worked as a driver and died in 1994. His mother, Nina Yakovlevna, a graduate of the Leningrad military-mechanical institute, has survived the Leningrad blockade. After the WWII she obtained higher financial education, worked as a bookkeeper, died in 2007. After graduation in 1970 from the Chernigov branch of Kiev Polytechnical Institute, Lebedev has been left to work in the institute, and later he was elected the secretary of the Chernigov city town committee of Komsomol. In 1971-1972 served in the army in the Kiev military district, then worked in Chernigov oblast Komsomol committee. Since 1973 he served in the state security system, since 1975 - in the foreign intelligence (the First Central administrative directorate of KGB of the USSR). Has obtained counterspy preparation at the Kiev school of KGB and intelligence education at the Red Banner Institute of KGB. In 1978 graduated from the Diplomatic Academy the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the USSR. Speaks German also English languages. Repeatedly has worked abroad: GDR, FRG, West Berlin, Germany. In 1998-2000 - official representative of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service in the USA. On May 20, 2000, appointed the SVR Director by the decree of the Russian President. Married for more than 30 years, his spouse Vera Mikhailovna is an engineer-chemist. They have two adult sons, two grandsons. Hobbies - work, family, summer dacha.

Lawyers of FSB Lieutenant-Colonel complained about groundlessness of his criminal case
Lawyers of Pavel Ryaguzov, Lieutenant-Colonel of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) Pavel Rjaguzov have forwarded a complaint on illegality and groundlessness of excitation of criminal case against their client to the Moscow military garrison court, daily Kommersant writes, referring to a report by the Interfax news agency.
Ryaguzov’s detention was mentioned in connection with investigation of the murder of investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya.
Ryaguzov’s defence underlines in their statement that Pavel Ryaguzov "is, indeed, accused of fulfilment of illegal, in opinion of invstigation, actions which have taken place in 2002, however he does not plead guilty, as he says he has acted within the framework of the legal field".
At the same time, the lawyers acknowedge that actions of Pavel Ryjaguzov and other employees of law enforcement bodies were already repeatedly checked and "recognized lawful by two independent officials representing various offices of Public Prosecutor".
"Checks in the directorate of internal security of the Ministry of Interior, directorate of injternal security of the FSB and in the State Office of Public Prosecutor have also been carried out and they came to the same conclusions", the lawyers mark in their application. In this connection the defence points out that initiation of a criminal case five years later on the facts which have been repeatedly checked up, is illegal.
Ryaguzov’s lawyer, Andrei Trepykhalin, told news agency Interfax that the charge was produced according to the articles on kidnapping and beating a resident of Ponikarov in 2002, extortion, illegal penetration into the dwelling and misuse of authority. Trepykhalin said his client had never been officially tied to the Politkovskaya case, though another security service officer had announced as much previously. The lawyer also said Ryagyuzov was not charged within the framework of the Politkovskaya murder case.

High-ranking replacements to take place in security forces of Russia’s Dagestan
Loud rearrangements have been taking place in security forces of Dagestan, radio Ekho Moskvy reports, referring to online site Kavkaz Times. Probably, the chief of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) republic directorate, Nikolai Gryaznov, has left his post, radio


Dagestan on map
says.
At the moment Gryaznov is on holidays, however, according to unofficial sources, right after that he either would leave for service for Moscow, or he would head the Russian Academy of FSB in the Russian capital. According to the source of the online site, Gryaznov’s departure is connected with the dissatisfaction with his work in the leadership of Dagestan. Besides cases of abduction of local residents by people in camouflage have become frequent recently in the republic.

Extremist grouping’s female wing leader was second militant killed by FSB in Karachayevo-Cherkessia
AIA already reported, referring to the Public relations centre of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), that two militants have been killed in the Russian-Georgian frontier zone, controlled by the Karachayevo-Cherkess border guard unit on September 5. One of them has been identified as Rustan Ionov, born in 1977, a resident of Psyzh, Karachayevo-Cherkess Republic, Moslem name Abu-Bakar. The FSB believes he was the leader of the religious and extremist community in the Karachayevo-Cherkess Republic and involved in the organisation of terrorist acts in the republic. There was no particular infromation on the second militant killed during the exchange of fire.
Daily Komsomolskaya pravda expands on the incident that Ionov was an „emir” of Karachayevo-Cherkessia and he reportedly found refuge in Georgia all the last year. He recruited and trained mercenaries with the support of the international terrorist community, daily alleges. The mercenaries themselves were making explosives and electronic mechanisms to fit them. Ionov was trying to transport 50 of such "homemade products" into Karachayevo-Cherkessia on September 5.
The press-service of Karachayevo-Cherkessia FSB directorate believes 15 kg of explosives would suffice for 50 large acts of terrorism. They say that most likely Ionov had planned to carry out the acts of terror in the North Caucasus, and first of all, in the territory of Karachayevo-Cherkessia.
The person accompanying Ionov was, in fact, Elvira Kytova, known among terrorists under a name of Amina, heading a female wing in his grouping. She recruited and trained suicide bombers and made explosives on pair with Ionov.
According to the FSB directorate press-service, in July and August the FSB operatives together with other law enforcement agencies have detained Ionov’s twenty accomplices.

Yushchenko congratulated employees of military intelligence of Ukraine
Supreme Commander in chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, President Viktor Yushchenko has congratulated employees of military intelligence of Ukraine on professional holiday, news agency RBC-Ukraine reports, referring to the press-service of the President.
The President has thanked the leadership of the agency and employees of the service for their work. " You adequately carry out complex mission which has been entrusted you by the state. Our country cannot effectively exist without your work. Without exaggeration, you do maintain safety and protection of the state, of all our citizens", news agency cites Yushchenko salutatory word.
Yushchenko has assured that as the Head of the state and Supreme Commander in chief of the Armed Forces together with the leadership of Ministry of Defence he holds the solution of the complex of problems of the Service in the centre of his attention. " I insist on essential strengthening of the state support that is given to intelligence agencies in modern conditions. It is not a simply wish and promise. My words do have and will have particular results", Yushchenko emphasized in his message.
According to the President, nowadays Ukraine requires "modern analytical, properly equipped, high quality intelligence which will be reliably protecting interests of the state in rigid competitive external conditions"."It is necessary to very carefully consider new tendencies, including present progress of world negotiating process in the collective security area", he added.
Celebrations on the occasion of the 15-th anniversary of the military intelligence om the basis of Central administrative directorate of intelligence of the Defence Ministry of Ukraine took place in the House of Officers in Kiev, according to the press-service of the President.

Ukrainian military intelligence celebrates its 15 year anniversary
Kiev-based daily Segodnya writes that one year after declaration of Ukraine’s independence, on September 7, 1992, a decree on creation of Central administrative directorate of intelligence of the Defence Ministry of Ukraine was signed.
Contrary to ordinary opinion that the nearest neighbours-Russians have been actively interfering in the process of becoming and development of the service, even much more serious resistance had proceeded, so to say, from within, from the local military leaders, the paper marks. – Those were own politicians, officials, militaries, who were putting up different barriers, — Alexander Skipalsky, the first head of the GUR (Main Inteligence Directorate), now Security Service of Ukraine Vice-Chairman, recollects.
He mentions an example when in 1993, a delegation of the Intelligence Department of the US Ministry of Defence paid visit to Ukraine — Skipalsky accompanied the guests. Americans were shown object of radio engineering intelligence Zvezda near Odessa, the Kharkov higher school preparing experts on antiaircraft rocket complexes -300, military airfield at Priluki, where strategic bombers u-160 and u-95, capable to bear nuclear weapons were stationed. The schedule of visit of the US delegation was coordinated on the top-level, the President, Prime-Minister, Minister of Defence knew about it. After Americans have left, in 3-4 days Skipalsky got to know that the SBU agents, his former subordinates from military counterspionage, had been investigating the schedule, people and sites the US delegation visited. They had received the order to prove that as a result of the visit significant damage was ostensibly caused to national interests of Ukraine, and state and military secrets were divulged. — Someone in Ukraine was very much desirable to inflate a big scandal, — Skipalsky recollects those days not without sarcasm.
Little is known about overseas activity of the GUR. However, this closed structure not once appeared in an epicentre of dramatic events at home, Segodnya underlines.
In November 2004, at the height of "the Orange revolution", rebellious "Orange" leaders who had prevented, as they said "a bloody Sunday”, secretly gathered at „the Island”, as the directorate’s basis is called in abbreviated form, at Podole in Kiev. According to the version of the "Orange", divisions of Interior troops were ready to be put forward against the people rallying on the Kiev’s main square.
Then a little time passed and one of potential heroes, the GUR chief Alexander Galaka became temporarily jobless. He was removed from his post, without explanation of reasons. Galaka proved the incompetence of the decision and was restored in his position by the court. Last spring, members of parliament Lev Gnatenko, Oleg Kalashnikov, and others accused GUR of preparation for coup d’etat: three special-task forces groups were allegedly preparing to carry out power capture of the Council of Ministers, the Supreme Rada, to arrest members of the government and parliament members from the national unity coalition. However, according to conclusions of Military Prosecutor’s Office those accusations have not proved to be true, the paper marks.

Ukraine’s SBU reveals lack of information concerning acts of terrorism in Ministry of Transport


Valentin Nalyvaychenko
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced it had no information from the Ministry of Transport of Ukraine concerning possible preparation of acts of terrorism on the railway, online paper proUA reports, referring to acting head of the SBU, Valentin Nalyvaychenko, who spoke to journalists after session of staff of the interdepartmental commission of the SBU Antiterrorist centre.
«We precisely ascertain absence of information submitted by the Ministry of Transport somehow testifying or specifying possibility of preparation or carrying out of acts of terrorism or other socially dangerous actions», emphasized the acting SBU head. Nalyvaychenko also informed that the session of the commission had been called in connection with the statement of Minister of Transport and Communication, Nikolai Rudkovsky, on September 4, about alleged presence of information concerning preparation of acts of terrorism on the railway. Nalyvaychenko noted that Rudkovsky was invited to session of the Antiterrorist centre, though he had not arrived there. Instead of the minister one of his assistants was present there, the acting SBU head said.

Opening of the files ruined Bulgarian secret intelligence: candidate for mayor
Candidate for mayor of coastal Varna city in Bulgaria, Veselin Danov, said in an interview to Radio Focus Varna that the Bulgarian secret intelligence have been ruined with the opening of the communist secret service files. Danov added that the files of I and II Chief Police Department’s employees shouldn’t have been opened. According to him that act of the state has condemned people to destruction who are working abroad, Focus News Agency reports.
Meanwhile The Sofia Echo expands that some of the sections of the communist-era secret services have been among the best represented by parliament members.
“Breza, Kolos (…) Karamfil-4, Panorama, Electronica, Express, Propaganda, as well as Petyo and Zravkov are the kind of pseudonyms used for agents and collaborators of the secret services who have been elected as parliament members after 1990,” it cites daily Dnevnik. Most of the ex-agents in the parliament, 43, were collaborators to the secret services in the regional departments of the Interior Ministry. Another 10 members of the parliament have been recruited by the Sofia city section of the former secret services.
The duties of agents included collecting information, recruitment, and to exert influence, reported the daily. The next largest group among the parliament members with 21 have been agents for the central management bureau of the secret services, involved in counter-intelligence. The third largest group of agents, 19, were part of the external intelligence. In some cases parliament members were consecutively involved in reporting, intelligence gathering and contra-intelligence, The Sofia Echo adds.

Amount of damage to security of Kyrgyzstan being established in current espionage case
Security services of Kyrgyzstan have indicted the group of persons suspected of gathering and transfer abroad of classified information, news agency Kazahstan segodnya reports. News agency RIA Novosti reported earlier that the persons charged are Defence Ministry pensioner Valery Patsula, Vladimir Berezhnoy, ksat myrkanov and staff officer of Kyrgyz State National Security Committee Alexander Gryb.
"Criminal case has been initiated according to paragraph 302/1 of Kyrgyz Republic Criminal code (transfer or gathering of information making service secret with the purpose of transfer to foreign organizations),” news agency cites a representative of the press centre of the State National Security Committee of Kyrgyzstan(KGNB).
Four persons who earlier served in security forces of Kyrgyzstan have been charged within the framework of this criminal case and are in the investigatory insulator of the KGNB now.
"It is too early to make conclusions and hasty political statements about the high treason case involving employees of the Ministry of Defence and secret services of Kyrgyzstan," press-centre of the State National Security Committee of Kyrgyzstan says in its announcement.
In this connection, the KGNB press- centre has called representatives of mass-media to be more correct in their remarks on the case as "not confirmed facts can provide negative background to the friendship of Kyrgyzstan with the countries, taking a priority place in the foreign policy of the republic". At present investigators have been establishing in what amount the classified information was transferred by the accused, Kazahstan segodnya adds.